The best goaltender in Nashville Predators history is officially a Hall of Famer.
Pekka Rinne was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Nov. 9, joining the Class of 2026 that includes Patrice Bergeron, Carey Price, Cindy Curley, Keith Tkachuk and Brian Burke.
“I’m humbled to be standing here amongst all my heroes,” Rinne said from the stage at Brookfield Place in Toronto. “I’d be lying if I said I saw this coming.”
Rinne is the Predators’ all-time leader in wins (369), shutouts (60), saves (17,627) and playoff wins (45). He won the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender in 2018 and the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 2021.
“Getting to wear the Predators jersey throughout my career and play for an organization that I love was the absolute highlight of my career,” he said. “Nashville became so much more than just a place where I played hockey. It became my second home.”
Rinne, a native of Kempele, Finland, was drafted in the eighth round in 2004 while playing for Oulun Kärpät in Finland. He made his NHL debut in 2005, then became the full-time starter in 2008.
“(Nashville) gave me a community, lifelong friendships and memories that my family and I will cherish forever. The people in Nashville welcomed me, supported me and made me feel like a part of something bigger than hockey. I’ll always be grateful for that,” he said.
Rinne is the all-time leader in wins among Finnish-born goaltenders, passing Kari Lehtonen in 2019. He represented Finland at four IIHF World Championships, winning MVP of the tournament in 2014.
He is the second Predators player to enter the Hall, joining Shea Weber (2024).
In 2021, Rinne announced his retirement from the NHL after 15 seasons. In 2023, the team unveiled an 11-foot statue of Rinne on the plaza of Bridgestone Arena. In 2024, he was inducted as an inaugural member of the team’s Golden Hall.
One of Rinne’s final acts as a Predators player was to mentor Juuse Saros, who is also a native of Finland. Saros, who was present in Toronto for Rinne’s Hall of Fame induction, is now the starting goaltender and has the second-most wins in franchise history (235).
Last week, after a 29-save performance in a 4-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes, Saros gave Rinne plenty of credit for his career so far.
“He helped me with everything with my game,” Saros said on Nov. 4. “Just making me feel like I was at home here right away. A lot of very good memories.”
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Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at [email protected], follow him on X at @alexdaugherty1 or check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville Predators’ Pekka Rinne ‘humbled’ by Hockey Hall of Fame induction
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